Harry Kane has broken Alan Shearer’s 22-year record for most Premier League goals scored in a calendar year and has also now scored more times in 2017 than both Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.
The England forward equalled Shearer’s long-standing record after registering a sublime hat-trick away at high-flying Burnley last week.
And Kane only needed 22 minutes against Southampton to break it after heading home Christian Eriksen’s pinpoint free-kick from close range to score his 37th Premier League goal.
Harry Kane has broken the record for most Premier League goals scored in a calendar year
His opening goal against Southampton broke Alan Shearer’s 22-year record of 36 goals
Tottenham were quick to congratulate Kane after he netted his 37th league goal in 2017
Kane now tops the charts for most Premier League goals scored in a calendar year ever above Shearer, who netted 36 times in Blackburn Rovers’ title winning season in 1995, Robin van Persie, (35 goals in 2011) Theirry Henry, (34 goals in 2004), Ruud van Nistelrooy (30 goals in 2003) and Les Ferdinand (30 goals in 1995).
After surrendering his record, Shearer immediately took to Twitter to congratulate Kane on his achievement.
He wrote: ‘You’ve had a magnificent 2017 @HKane. You deserve to hold the record of most @premierleague goals in a calendar year. Well done and keep up the good work.’
Tottenham were equally as quick to congratulate their star man, Tweeting ‘RECORD BREAKER!!! #ONEOFOUROWN’.
Kane was not finished, though, and added his second to take his tally in 2017 to 55
It took the Spurs No 10 past Lionel Messi for most goals scored for club and country this year
With none of the other top scorers in Europe playing until next year, it will be the first time since 2009 Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo have not scored the most goals in a calendar year
The Spurs No 10 was not finished there, though, and scored his brace 15 minutes later before completing his sixth league hat-trick and eighth in total this year.
His three goals in Spurs’ dominant victory against Southampton earned the striker another milestone as he took his goal tally for the year to an impressive 56 – the most of any player in Europe.
Kane’s 56 goals will definitely be the most goals scored this year with Lionel Messi (54), Cristiano Ronaldo (53), Robert Lewandowski (53) and Edinson Cavani (53) all not playing again until 2018, meaning It will be the first time since 2009 Messi or Ronaldo have not scored the most goals in a calendar year.
The last person to score the most goals in a calendar year before Messi and Ronaldo’s dominance over the past seven years, was David Villa, who netted 43 times for Barcelona and Spain in 2009.
Although Kane has had an astonishing year in front of goal, he is still someway behind Messi’s incredible tally of 91 goals in 2012.
But the 24-year-old has reached the landmark total of goals and overtaken Barcelona star Messi in the scoring charts this year in fewer games than him, with Messi featuring 64 times compared to Kane’s 52.
The 24-year-old netted his hat-trick in the second half to take his tally for the year to 56
Kane is now one Spurs goal behind the club’s all-time top goalscorer Teddy Sherringham
49 of his 56 goals have come for Tottenham in 2017; only Cavani and Messi (50 each) have more among players within the big five European leagues.
His hat-trick against Mauricio Pellegrino’s also took him to within two goals of becoming Tottenham’s all-time top scorer. Kane now has 96 goals for Spurs in just 132 games, just three behind Teddy Sherringham, who amassed the number of goals in 233 appearances.